Improvement in fire-escapes



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.-

JOHNT. COW'LES, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

IMPRovEMENT IN'FIRE-ESCAPES.

Specification forming part of Letters vPatent No. 172,976, dated February 1, 1876; application iiled r June 30, 1875.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN T. COWLES, of

Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of a building with my invention attached thereto, i

and Fig. 2 is an enlarged cross-section of my said invention detached from the building.

Similar letters of reference indicate like parts in both figures of the drawing. I'

My invention has for its object to improve thel class of combined stand-pipes and ladders now in use; and to rthat end it consists in the combination Withthe ordinary stand' pipe, provided with a series of horizontal bars arranged at graduated distances one from the other, of side guides, asffwill be more fully understood by the following description and claim. A f

In the drawing, A represents the Wall of the building, and B the stand-pipe. This pipe is permanently attached to the outer surface of the Wall, in close proximity to the Windows, and extends from a point near the sidewalk upward toy the upper story of the building, and is so arrangedl at its lower end as to admit of being readily coupled to the dischargepipe of the engine. (Not shown.) Permanently attached to ythis pipe at a point near the base of each window, and communicating with the interior of the pipe, isa coupling, C.

These couplings are so arranged as to admit Y of readily attaching a hose .to them for discharging Water into the different ,apartments on the respective iioors of the building. D D are ,horizontal bars, which are permanently attached to the pipe B on opposite sides of the same, and at graduated distances one above the other, as shown in Fig. 1. The arrangement of the'se bars is such as to form a series of steps, by which means a person can readily ascend the pipe to any ioor oi' the building. E E are wire ropes or metal rods, which pass through the bars D D near their outer ends, forming the guards or side rails proper of the ladder, as shown in Fig.' l.

It is readily seen that With'my invention, in case a -fire should break out in any of -the upper stories of the building, the firemen can readily ascend the pipe and connect the hose to the coupling at the story inl-Which the fire is burning,.while the lowerend of the standpipe is being connected to the discharge-pipe ot;l the engine, thus relieving the ii'reman of the labor of carrying with'him the amount of hose, when the latter is connected directly to the discharge-pipe of the engine.

Having'thus described my invention, I

claim- The combination of thev stand-pipe B, -hori` zontal bars D D, and side guards E E, all constructed and arrangedl substantially as and for the purpose specified.

' JOHNr T. COWLES.

Witnesses J. T. WHIPPLE, J. W. MERRIAM. 

